The Court of Appeal has quashed the murder convictions and sentences of Dantay Brooks, son of dancehall entertainer David ‘Mavado’ Brooks, and his co-accused, Andre Hinds.
The decision was handed down on Friday morning.
The court heard the appeal on December 10 and 11 last year and later reserved judgment.
Attorney-at-law Hugh Wildman represented Brooks during the appeal. Prominent attorneys Peter Champagne, Oswest Senior-Smith and Harris had represented Brooks during the initial murder trial.
Thomas was shot, beheaded and his body set ablaze.
Attorney Oswest Senior-Smith, who represented Hinds at the appeal, said verdicts of acquittal were entered for both men on Friday. He reserved comment on the case until the written decision had been published and disseminated.
“I want to read and digest it properly first before commenting,” Senior-Smith told Observer Online.
“I know that certain grounds were common to both appellant’s as it pertains to the directions that the trial judge gave and the credibility of the witness. I would like to see the written decision first so I can comment in a more informed way. Kudos to the team, a lot of hard work went into the process,” he said.
Senior-Smith and Kemar Robinson represented Hinds at the appeal.
Senior-Smith said there were several grounds of appeal, including on the evidence of visual and voice identification.
– By Claude Mills
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